Starbucks Digs Own Grave With ‘Gender-Affirming’ Benefits

Starbucks is suffering from a self-induced migraine.

Members of Starbucks Workers United “voted overwhelmingly” for an open-ended strike beginning Nov. 13, according to Axios. This, unless Starbucks finalizes a contract agreement with the union. The strike would kick off right in time for Starbucks’ annual Red Cup Day, Nov. 13, one of the coffee giant’s busiest and most profitable days. Customers who purchase certain holiday beverages on Red Cup Day are rewarded with a limited edition, reusable cup. 

You may recall that unionized Starbucks baristas threw a fit in April over a new dress code, implemented May 12. 

“The new dress code hurts partners. Starbucks workers are racially diverse, disabled, queer, and trans. We need a dress code that allows us to show up as our full selves at work,” Starbucks Workers United whined on X. (RELATED: SANDOVAL: Starbucks Workers Upset They Can’t Look Like Actual Goblins Anymore)

The union further complained that the new dress code “restricts the gender expression of queer and trans workers, potentially forcing trans workers into dysphoria-inducing clothing.”

The new dysphoria-inducing uniform? A solid black shirt, khaki, black, or blue denim bottoms, and a green apron. 

The union’s X account is plastered with photos of said racially diverse, disabled, queer, and trans individuals. It includes a call to “strike with pride,” and the assertion, “[q]ueer rights are workers’ rights are womens’ rights are trans rights.” 

Queer rights are workers’ rights are womens’ rights are trans rights. ✊@womensmarch @PPFAUnionDC @SEIULocal500 pic.twitter.com/and8xtREZ9

— Starbucks Workers United (@SBWorkersUnited) June 24, 2023

“My name is Christi Sessa (they/he). I have worked at Starbucks for nearly four years. I got the job at Starbucks for the same reasons that many trans and queer people do: their advertised health insurance and benefits.” pic.twitter.com/0HoEf1gcPD

— Starbucks Workers United (@SBWorkersUnited) December 2, 2023

The blue-haired, HRT-addled barista is a stereotype well-earned. And the precise sort of employee Starbucks began catering to as early as 2013. 

Since that year, “Starbucks health insurance plans have included coverage for gender-affirming surgery. In 2018, Starbucks expanded health insurance plan coverage to include procedures that were previously considered cosmetic — including hair removal, facial feminization and hair transplants, among others,” Starbucks assured the public in a 2023 statement. 

“In fact, Starbucks recently extended medical travel reimbursement coverage for individuals who are required to travel for access to gender-affirming care.” 

This statement was published in response to “[u]nfounded allegations made by others accusing Starbucks of withholding gender-affirming care from our partners at stores with union activity.”

In other words, unionized baristas are so mentally ill, losing subsidized “hair removal” and “facial feminization” surgeries was actually a chief concern. 

HAPPY 1 YEAR ANNIVERSARY to our union’s Trans Rights Action Committee (TRAC)!

From meeting with state legislators to coordinating actions with LGBTQ+ organizations like @PrideatWork, TRAC is fighting for queer justice along with strong union contracts for everyone in our union✊ pic.twitter.com/U1xYNaQzoJ

— Starbucks Workers United (@SBWorkersUnited) September 4, 2024

Over 12,000 baristas belong to Starbucks Workers United, according to the union’s website. The website lists three core demands: 

1. “Better hours to improve staffing in our stores.”
2. “Higher take-home pay, so we can pay our bills.”
3. “Resolution for hundreds of outstanding unfair labor practice charges for union busting.”

Approximately 655 of Starbucks’ U.S. locations have voted to unionize, according to data from Union Elections. Starbucks CEO Brian Niccol claimed the company operated nearly 18,300 total coffee houses across the U.S. and Canada as of Sept. 25. (RELATED: Starbucks Plots MAHA Makeover After Meeting With RFK Jr.)

Starbucks spokeswoman Jaci Anderson maintains that “Starbucks already offers the best job in retail, including more than $30 an hour on average in pay and benefits for hourly partners,” according to The Associated Press. 

Not to mention, healthcare coverage for elective genital mutilation.

Follow Natalie Sandoval on X: @NatSandovalDC